Ichigo of the 2nd Division
by Izanagi7
Summary: What if Ichigo was sent back in time? What if he was the one that Soifon formed a connection with instead of Yoruichi? How would things have turned out? Time Travel fic. Language warning.
1. The Final Confrontation

**(A/N) I'm Back! After almost two years of stagnation I have finally returned to writing on this site. I won't state the reasons that I left, as they are personal, however, In my absence I have changed a lot in both my views and how I look at things. when I last wrote I had just turned 18 years old, fresh out of high school, and from what I saw while looking through my older works, I didn't have a clue what I was doing. Seriously it was like I had never heard of spell-check before. Now that I'm back however, I have decided to rework my earlier fics, actually planning out what I'm going to write instead of just writing off the top of my head and attempt to write actually good stories. **

**A lot of other things about my views have changed as well, but I won't type them here, if you want to know what to expect from me from now on check my profile as I will be updating it later today.**

**Anyway Here at long last is an updated (****coherent) version of Ichigo of the 2nd Division. please enjoy**

**I still do not own bleach (unfortunately)**

**Chapter 1: The Final Confrontation**

High above the ravaged landscape of what was once the peaceful town of Karakura, two warriors prepared to finish a war that had brought the world to ruin, taking billions of lives and leaving the world a barren wasteland in its wake.

The first was a tall orange haired man who was slowly preparing his final charge on his hated adversary. His body was covered in countless scars acquired through the many battles which he had taken part in during the bloody war. His amber eyes were tired, weighed down by the sorrow of everyone he had lost in this endless battle. However, though he was haggard, his eyes still held the light of hope that his struggle would not be in vain. This man was named Kurosaki Ichigo.

Across form Ichigo stood an equally tall brown haired man whose very body trembled with rage and the utmost contempt for the boy that stood before him. Gone was his cool composure, gone was his seemingly peaceful nature, and in its place stood a man whose only purpose was to annihilate his adversary. His eyes, which once held an air of absolute confidence, now freely displayed the psychotic monster that he truly was. This man's name was Sosuke Aizen.

These two men faced each other, preparing to make the move that would decide the fate the of the last two beings on Earth.

"It's over Aizen. No matter what happens here today, you will lose," stated Ichigo in a calm voice.

"What are you going on about Kurosaki? You say that I will lose? Ha! You have become disillusioned boy! Today you will die, and when you do, I will finally stand atop the heavens!" ranted Aizen with an insane edge to his voice.

"Stand atop what? This?" asked Ichigo as he swept his hand over the barren landscape.

"There is nothing to rule over, don't you get it? You and I are all that's left. Whoever wins here today will be forced to face this hell alone. Don't you see Aizen? There is no reason to fight anymore," Ichigo said in exhaustion.

"SILENCE you worthless little insect! I am god! I will simply create the world anew, and then I shall be worshiped for all eternity as I rightfully should be!"

"And you call me disillusioned. YOU ARE NOT GOD! You are simply a sad little bastard with a ego problem," said Ichigo in irritation.

"SHUT UP! You know nothing about me. Besides, you forget, I still have this," he said while holding up the Hogyoku with a sadistic smirk in his face.

Ichigo instinctively returned to his battle stance. However, instead of his usual scowl, Aizen was surprised to see that he had a cocky smirk across his face.

"You know Aizen, its ironic how our roles have been reversed," Ichigo said cheekily.

"What are you talking about Kurosaki?" muttered Aizen in irritation.

"Well at the start of this, it was you who stood with the calm composure and I was the brash hothead, and now..."

"ENOUGH! I will not be lectured by the likes of you. Now, I think it's high time that we finally ended this!" Aizen shouted while taking a battle stance of his own.

"Now there's something we can agree on," said Ichigo as he readied himself.

And they were off.

The two charged at each other with everything they had. The black steel of Tensa Zangetsu glinted in the fading light of the evening sky as it rushed toward the water-like blade of Kyoka Suigetsu.

"DIE NOW KUROSAKI!"

"IT ENDS HERE AIZEN!"

And it was over.


	2. A New Beginning

**Chapter 2: A New Beginning**

The Dust began to settle from the backlash that was sent forth from the titanic clash between the forces of light and darkness. The two warriors stood locked together high above the skies of Karakura in the aftermath of their battle.

Aizen for one was ecstatic, he had done it, he had finally defeated the only obstacle stand between him and the throne of the world. He was about to gloat, that was, until he saw the face of his opponent.

Despite the sword in his chest, Kurosaki Ichigo was smiling.

"What's so funny Kurosaki? You've lost; don't tell me that you're so blind that you can't see that."

Ichigo's smile turned into a full grown grin.

"Oh I know I've lost, however, so have you!"

"What are you talking about Kurosaki? You didn't even touch me," said a confused Aizen.

"That's because I wasn't aiming for you genius," said Ichigo smugly.

"What?"

"Look down."

Aizen looked down and paled, there, embedded within the Hogyoku, was Ichigo's Zanpaktou.

"YOU FOOL! WHAT HAVE YOU DONE?" screamed Aizen in absolute horror.

"I decided that actually defeating you wasn't worth everything that I've gone through. My only goal was to make sure that you didn't win," said Ichigo solemnly.

"Do you realize what you've done? The Hogyoku bends the laws of both space and time. If something like that were to be destroyed, do you realize what could happen?" Aizen said, looking at Ichigo as if he were the dumbest thing on Earth.

"Has to be better than what's already happened," Ichigo deadpanned.

Then suddenly the orb cracked.

The explosion which fallowed shook the very foundations of the universe. It was so powerful that it blew the two warriors apart with the force of a supernova.

Aizen, refusing to relinquish his power, held steadfastly to the Hogyoku.

However, the power ended up being too much for him to bear and the power which he craved so much ended up burning the skin from his bones.

"If I'm going down, then I'm taking you with me KUROSAKI!" shouted Aizen as his skeletal figure reached for Ichigo. Unfortunately, before he could reach the orange haired Shinigami, his bones were burnt to ash and his soul was scorched into oblivion.

And Sosuke Aizen was no more.

Ichigo watched as he was blown further and further from where Aizen once stood. Then, in one final flash of light, Ichigo's world went black.

**XXXXX**

"Mister?"

"Mister?"

"Hey wake up Mister?"

These were the words which brought Ichigo from his deep slumber.

His eyes fluttered open, showing him a view of a bright blue sky, which was partially hidden behind the branches of some overhanging treetops. As he began to observe his surroundings, he saw that he was currently in a forest, and to his great surprise, it was a very familiar forest.

As he began to sit up to get a better look at his surroundings, he heard a small "eep" sound coming from his left. His gaze shifted in that direction, and was met with a very odd sight.

There, hidden behind a tree, Ichigo made out the visage of a small girl, who in Ichigo's mind, could be no older than about five years old.

Seeing that she was obviously frightened, Ichigo dropped his trademark scowl, and replaced it with a more gentle expression, one lacking any malice or ill will.

"Hey Kid? You can come out. I'm not going to hurt you," said Ichigo gently.

After about a minute of waiting, the little girl finally stepped out from behind the tree. She was about 3ft tall, with long raven black hair, and a heart shaped face. Her eyes were coal black, and her skin was porcelain white. And she stood before Ichigo wearing a jet black kimono.

However, it was her face which held most of Ichigo's attention.

Her tiny innocent face was currently marred by a look of fear, caution, and great curiosity.

She began to approach him slowly, cautiously. Ichigo could tell that she was scared; however, it appeared to him that her curiosity was overpowering any fear that she might have had.

Ichigo waited patiently as she approached. Letting her come to him at her own pace, then, when he deemed that she was close enough, he began to speak.

"Sorry if I scared you Kid, I really didn't mean to. My name is Kurosaki Ichigo, and um, do you have any idea where I am?" he asked her while looking around.

"Strawberry? That's a funny name," commented the girl as she turned her head to the side.

Her comment caused a small tick mark appeared on Ichigo's head; however, in light of his current situation he opted to let it slide this time.

"Actually, my name means 'One Who Protects', but back to my question, do you know where I am?" he questioned again.

The little girl took a minute to look at him strangely before answering.

"This is the forest on the outskirts of the 2nd Division barracks. I was walking along and I saw a bright flash. I waited until the bright light dimmed down, and when I came over to see what happened, I found you. Now what I want to know is, who are you? Your wearing the standard Shinigami robes, so your obviously part of the Gotei 13. But what Division are you from? And how did you get here?" she said as suspicion became evident in her voice.

Her questions puzzled Ichigo. This was mostly due to the revelations that they brought him. He was obviously in Soul Society, that much was certain. However, this was not _his_ Soul Society. His Soul Society was a desolate wasteland, which had been raised to the ground during the war with Aizen.

However, he did recognize this forest now. This was where Yoruichi-san and her apprentice, the 2nd Division Captain Soifon had trained him in hoho and hakuda during the course of the war. Of course by the word 'training', what he really meant was 'kick the crap out of him until he was fast enough to defend himself'.

Ichigo shuddered at the memory.

'_But it did pay off'_ he thought to himself as he flexed one of his arms.

Than something donned on him, his wounds, they were gone.

The gaping hole in his chest where Kyoka Suigetsu had been imbedded not too long ago was now completely healed.

'_What the hell?'_ was all Ichigo could think.

"Hello?" queried the voice of the little girl, obviously trying to get his attention.

"Ah sorry about that, dazed off for a minute. Anyway, do you have a name? It feels kind of weird simply calling you Kid" said Ichigo while scratching the back of his head.

"Oh! My apologies Kurosaki-san was it? (Ichigo's fine) OK Ichigo-san, my name is Fon Shaolin.

Ichigo paled.


	3. Memories and Explanations

**Chapter 3: Memories and Explanations**

Ichigo paled.

'_No way, there's no way that this kid could be Fon Shaolin because that would mean…'_

**(Flashback)**

_Yoruichi, Soifon, and Ichigo had just sat down to relax after a full day of training._

"_You have improved greatly from where you were when we began Kurosaki," commented Soifon as she leaned against a tree._

"_Ichigo," said the Substitute Shinigami as he leaned against his giant cleaver like blade._

"_Huh?" asked the 2__nd__ Division Captain in confusion._

"_Even if you do not see it this way, I consider us friends. I have gotten very close to both yourself and Yoruichi-san in our time training together, and all I ask is that you drop the formalities and simply call me Ichigo," said the Orange haired boy as he gave one of his rare smiles to the petit Shinigami._

_As Ichigo looked to Soifon, he could easily tell that she was stunned by his words, and clearly had no idea how to respond to them. In desperation, she looked to Yoruichi for support. This was met with just a simple warm smile from the golden-eyed goddess, which was quickly followed by a nod of her head, encouraging the young Captain to do what her heart told her. This action caused a ghost of a smile to play across the young woman's lips as she turned back to Ichigo who was patiently awaiting her response._

"_Fon Shaolin," she said simply._

_Now it was Ichigo's turn to say "Huh?"_

"_My name, its Fon Shaolin," she said again, only this time with a hint of annoyance._

"_But I thought that your name was Soifon?," questioned Ichigo, who was now very confused._

"_No, Soifon was my grandmother's codename which I took when I joined the stealth force," she explained, a lot more patiently then she probably would have back at the start of their training._

"_I am telling you this because, after getting to know you, I have deemed that you are a much better person than I initially made you out to be, as a result I must admit that too see you as a friend, Ichigo," said Soifon as she looked at the Substitute with a smile on her face._

_In response, Ichigo simply smiled back at her as the two fell into a comfortable silence._

_Looking on at their conversation, Yoruichi cheered in her head at the fact that, after all her hard work, her two apprentices had finally become friends._

_So, for the next ten minutes, a comfortable silence enveloped the three of them._

_However, this silence only lasted until the slave-driver that was Yoruichi decided that it was time to get back to training._

_And thus the day continued._

**(End Flashback)**

Ichigo just stared at the little girl completely stunned.

'_She looks just like her, only much younger, the hair, the eyes, everything. But if this little girl is actually Soifon, than that would mean…'_

"**Do you get it now king? The reason that everything is all green and leafy again is because you aren't in your time anymore, you're in the past, WAAAYYY in the past by the looks of it," **this revelation came from the voice of the very familiar Hollow that resided in the back of Ichigo's head.

'_THE PAST?!' _thought Ichigo in complete and utter shock.

_/Correct Ichigo, it would seem that when the Hogyoku exploded, it propelled you back through time itself/ _commented the voice of Ichigo's Zanpaktou from inside his mindscape.

'_You mean I'm stuck in the PAST?!' _mentally screamed Ichigo, still unable to get over the shock of the revelation.

"**Man your slow; YES YOU ARE STUCK IN THE PAST! Just be glad that you weren't the one holding the Hogyoku, remember what happened to Aizen?' **the Hollow asked with an evil smirk.

Ichigo shuddered at the memory.

'_But wait, if I'm stuck in the past than that would mean…' _Ichigo's brow furrowed in irritation, _'that means that I have to fight Aizen ALL OVER AGAIN!' _he raged in his head, furious that he had to go through the hell that was the war with Aizen for a second time.

"**True king, but this time you're stronger than he is, which means, you can totally kick his ASS!" **shouted the Hollow, taking sick satisfaction in all the way he was thinking about killing the traitorous bastard.

_/However Ichigo, I warn you not to alter the timeline to much, as it may cause adverse effects in your future/ _said Zangetsu, offering his wisdom on the situation.

"**What the hell are you talking about old man? The king's time period is shit, that's why I say do whatever you want, cause anything could be better than that wasteland," **argued Hollow Ichigo, wondering why the old man would ever want to go back there.

'_I have to agree with the Hollow, anything has to be better than that shit-hole,' _thought Ichigo with a shudder, remembering his own time period.

_/You may have a good point, however, I would at least make sure that nothing effects the meeting of your parents so that you actually EXIST!/ _emphasized Zangetsu, still trying to get his point across.

At this realization donned on both Ichigo and his Hollow as they nodded their heads vigorously.

_/For now Ichigo, I would suggest simply following young Shaolin here and just see where you path takes you/ _Zangetsu advised as Ichigo prepared to leave his mindscape.

Ichigo simply nodded as his body began to fade from his inner world, and as he left, it was as if someone had just pressed 'Play' on reality, as no time had passed sense he had descended into his mindscape.

As such, young Shaolin was still staring at his paled face with concern in his eyes.

"Um Ichigo-san, are you OK?" Shaolin asked.

Hearing her concern, Ichigo's features quickly changed from pale shock into a warm smile.

"I'm fine Shaolin-chan, in fact, I feel great!" cheered Ichigo as he pumped his fist in the air.

Shaolin simply sat there and giggled at his antics, which in response, made him smile.

"Hey Shaolin-chan (hm) would it be okay if-"that was as far as Ichigo got until a bone-chilling screech erupted from somewhere nearby.

Instantly on guard, Ichigo pulled the giant cleaver that was Zangetsu from its wrappings situated on his back. Just as he did so, a giant spider-like Hollow came swinging into the clearing from a web that Ichigo didn't even want to imagine where it came from. The Hollow obviously sensed that Ichigo was the stronger of the two individuals in the clearing, deciding that he would be the tastier meal, it broke into a full on charge straight at him.

For his part, Ichigo simply stood there with his Zanpaktou in hand, he could easily tell that this Hollow was strong, the ones who have the strength to break through to the Soul Society instead of the human world usually were, however, he could still tell that he would be able to deal with this one relatively easy (he'd obviously faced opponents who were a lot stronger than this guy). So he simply waited, not even bothering to take a defensive stance as the Hollow continued to charge.

As for Shaolin, she was both shocked and scared out of her mind. She was shocked because in all the time she had spent talking to Ichigo, she hadn't even noticed the giant cleaver that was his Zanpaktou. Shaolin knew enough about Shinigami to know that ones reiatsu level is what determines the size of their Zanpaktou, and by looking at the enormous blade in Ichigo's hand, the little girl couldn't even fathom how mush spiritual pressure he was containing. As for the reason that she was scared out of her mind, that was pretty self-explanatory. She had never seen a Hollow before, she had heard stories about them from her older brothers, but she had never actually seen one until today.

The two watched as the Hollow continued to speed toward them, emitting a feral growl as it did so, and just when it was only a few meters away from them it pounced. The Hollow soared high in the air, baring its fangs at them as it came speeding towards the two of them, and even though it was heading for Ichigo, it was so massive that it cast a shadow over both of the two other occupants of the clearing.

This only heightened the fear of young Shaolin as she could only watch as her death came rocketing towards her, so she did the only logical thing that she could think to do in this kind of situation, she screamed.

However, just before the monster could make contact with its victim, in one fluid motion, Ichigo cut right up the center of the Hollow's spider-like mask, completely annihilating the creature in one stroke.

As the last bits of the Hollow fell to the ground in front of them, Shaolin's facial expression was that of complete shock. _He killed it with one slash!_ That was all her mind could process at the moment. Very slowly, she turned her head to get a glimpse of the Orange haired Shinigami and watched as he looked to make sure that they were no longer in any danger, once had finished assessing their surroundings he turned back to her and gave her a wry smile.

"You okay Shaolin-chan?" Ichigo asked, still smiling at her as he rubbed the back of his head.

"H-hai," was all the girl could muster as she simply continued to gawk at the man standing in front of her. Only now did she notice the waves of spiritual energy that just seemed to pour off of Ichigo, she had no idea how she didn't notice it before. It was so strong that it not only made it hard to breathe, but it physically weighed her down as well.

Young Shaolin could honestly say that in her entire life, she had never met someone so powerful, Ichigo was obviously at least Captain Class or higher, and when he readied himself to fight it was truly a sight to behold. The air around her seemed to radiate his power, and the killer-intent was almost overwhelming, Shaolin found her extremely thankful that it wasn't directed at her, or she most likely would have fainted in fright. In the end, Shaolin could only ask one question.

"Who are you?" she asked, still in awe.

However, this simple question presented a big problem to Ichigo, as he really didn't want to lie to the first person he had met in this time period, especially sense, in his time, this little girl was one of his good friends. However, he couldn't exactly tell her the truth either, not just because there was a large possibility that she wouldn't believe him, but also because, in his opinion, she was too young for such a brutal story.

"Well Shaolin, like I told you, my name is Kurosaki Ichigo, and was once a human who had received the powers of a Shinigami while trying to protect my family," said Ichigo deciding to simply give half-truths for now.

"A human gaining shinigami powers, isn't that illegal?" asked Shaolin, now very interested as she had never heard of a human gaining Shinigami powers before.

"Yes, as a human, I had always had a lot more spiritual pressure than most other humans, which I had no idea about at the time. All I knew was that, for as long as I could remember, I was able to see the souls of the dead. One night, both a Hollow and a Shinigami, sensing my abnormally high spiritual pressure, made their way to my house. The Shinigami made it their first and ended up trying to convince me the she wasn't just another spirit stalking me, which happened a lot. Anyway, once the Hollow arrived she trapped me in a binding which I later learned was Kido, however, because of my overwhelming desire to protect my family, I ended up breaking the spell through sheer force of will, which greatly surprised the Shinigami. After I was free, I charged passed the Shinigami, ignoring her warnings and went to confront the monster that was attacking my family, having no idea that, in my current state, I was no match for the Hollow. However, I quickly learned my lesson, because not soon after I had started to fight the creature, it broke into a dead run at me, and would have killed me, except that the Shinigami I had met threw herself in front of me, defending me from being eaten alive by that thing. However, in defending me, the Hollow had ended up injuring her to the point where she couldn't fight anymore. So in desperation, she offered me one final chance to save my family," Ichigo paused to take a breath before continuing.

"What she offered was to give me a portion of her power so that I might defeat the Hollow. Accepting her offer, I took her Zanpaktou and stabbed it through my heart, this was only supposed to give me a portion of her power, however, because of my overwhelming spiritual pressure, I ended up taking almost all of it. Not knowing that, I went and easily destroyed the Hollow, however, because of the stress of the whole ordeal, I quickly passed out after that. The next day I met with the Shinigami again, and she explained to me that, because I had taken almost all her power, it was now my responsibility to defeat the Hollows in my area, and although I was reluctant at first, I soon grew to accept my role. Over the next few months she stayed with me, trained me, and taught me all there was to being a Shinigami, and in the end we grew quite close. However, one day I came home to find that she had mysteriously disappeared, all I found was a message from her telling me not to fallow her, which of course only made me fallow her anyway. When I eventually did catch up with her it turned out that she was being taken back to the Soul Society to be executed for the crime of giving a human Shinigami powers," this caused Shaolin to gasp, as she had no idea that the repercussions for such an action were so high (which their not, the only reason that Rukia was taken to be executed in the first place was because of Aizen's meddling).

"However, once I leaned of the situation there was no way that I was just going to stand by and let them drag the woman who had changed my life off to be executed, unfortunately for me, both of the Shinigami who were sent to capture her were high ranking officials, and though I was able to take on one of them easily enough, the other one took me out in less than a second," said Ichigo, the memory still making his blood boil as he recalled how weak he had once been.

"When you say 'taken out', what do you mean?" asked Shaolin, wondering what had happened.

"Well…" began Ichigo, clearly uncomfortable with telling her the gruesome way in which he was dispatched. "What happened was that the Shinigami quickly appeared behind me, using a technique that I later learned was called 'shunpo', and quickly plunged his Zanpaktou threw my chest," this made Shaolin wince at the mental image that it gave her.

"After that they left me for dead, and I would have died to if I weren't found by another Shinigami. However, he wasn't a normal Soul Reaper, he was an exiled Shinigami who took me in and not only helped me get my Shinigami powers back, but trained me in both Shikai and Bankai as well," this made Shaolin gape at the fact that he knew Bankai, she had never met or known anyone other than a Captain to possess the second release of a Zanpaktou.

"How long did it take you, my brothers have told me that it takes decades of training to finally achieve Bankai?" Shaolin asked.

"Three days," Ichigo answered with a smirk.

Shaolin was in shock.

"You must be joking Ichigo-san, there is no way that someone, especially someone who had only received Shinigami powers just months before could achieve Bankai in only three days," Shaolin said, still not being able to believe that it was possible.

"Well I think that the reason was that I had something to fight for and only a limited amount of time to accomplish it, so I pushed myself farther than I had ever gone before," said Ichigo.

Shaolin was still skeptical but she had to ask.

"Can I see it?" she asked hoping beyond hope that he would show her.

Ichigo thought about it for a moment before nodding his head. He stood up end performed a quick high level Kido spell (he had also become a lot better at kido, sense he had been trained by both Hachi and Tessai respectively) which erected a barrier around their small clearing (I don't know if this would actually work, but I'm guessing that it would considering that the Vizard have one around their hideout to suppress their spiritual pressure and avoid being found).

"This will make sure that no one senses us when I release my Bankai, don't want to be attacked by a bunch of angry Shinigami now do we?," Ichigo asked, to which Shaolin just shook her head.

"Alright, here we go!" exclaimed Ichigo as he brought Zangetsu in front of him, " BANKAI!"

After that the entire clearing exploded in a white flash.

It took a few minutes but when Shaolin could actually see again, she had to say that she was truly disappointed. She had heard that when a Shinigami achieved Bankai that their Zanpaktou was supposed to manifest into a giant form of itself, however Ichigo's Bankai did little save for changing his appearance a little and shrinking his Zanpaktou down to the size of a small black katana. She chose to express these feelings to Ichigo who simply chuckled in response.

"My Bankai isn't like that of most shinigami, while it does enhance my power significantly, my Bankai is mostly built for speed. What it does is compress my enormous amount of spiritual pressure into the blade, this allows me to move at speeds unmatched by most Shinigami, here let me show you what I mean," said Ichigo as he took off.

Shaolin was yet again awestruck at the speed she saw him moving at, he was everywhere and yet, he was nowhere at the same time. Being raised in the stealth force where speed was a lot more prized than sheer brute force, this made her change her opinion of his Bankai, now thinking of it as the ultimate power for any stealth force operative.

When he had felt that he had shown off enough, Ichigo stopped and brought his Zanpaktou back to its Shikai state as he sat back down beside Shaolin.

"You happy now," he asked while smiling at her wryly.

"Wow!" was all she managed to say.

"Yeah well I worked my butt off to get it, sadly I didn't get it on time," said Ichigo as he stared off into the distance.

"What do you mean?" asked Shaolin worried.

"By the time I had achieved Bankai, the sentence had already been carried out," Ichigo said sadly as he put his head down.

'_This is killing me, I don't know how much longer I can keep this up,' _Ichigo thought, being extremely uncomfortable with the lie he was telling.

"**Suck it up King, the sooner you finish, the sooner we can go explore," **snapped his Hollow irritably in an odd form of encouragement.

_/Yes I know it's hard, but the Hollow is right, just a little bit more and you can move on/ _said Zangetsu, also trying to get Ichigo through this story without losing his nerve.

"I'm so sorry," said Shaolin, unaware of his inner turmoil.

"It's okay, it happened a long time ago," said Ichigo who went back to staring off into space.

"It seems to me that you have been through a lot, but I have to ask, why are you here now?" Shaolin finally asked the question that had been bugging her throughout the whole story.

"I'm actually not quite sure of that myself, I was training to perfect the last aspect of my power, but when I had finally achieved my goal, the world went black and I woke up here," said Ichigo, who because he wanted to as honest to Shaolin as he possibly could without going into the whole time travel thing, had decided to tell her about his Hollow powers.

"But I thought that Bankai was the last part of a Shinigami's training?" Shaolin asked, now curious again.

"Normally it is, however, the man who helped me get my Shinigami powers back tricked me. What he did was cut my chain of fate, bind me, and throw me in a hole that was so steep that there was no way I could climb out, and I had to find a way out in three days or else I would be completely Hollowfied," Ichigo explained, which horrified Shaolin at the thought that someone would do something so horrible.

"Needless to say I made it out. However, from that day on I had what is called an 'Inner-Hollow', which is pretty much a crazy bloodthirsty albino version of me that lives in my head. Originally I despised it, however, throughout the time I've had him, he has proved to be more friend than foe, plus having an inner Hollow, gives one access to the whole spectrum of Hollow powers as well as my Shinigami powers," said Ichigo.

"**Oh King, I had no idea we were such good buddies now? Does that mean I get to take our body out for a test drive from time to time? Huh does it **_**pal?" **_mocked the Hollow with a laugh.

'_Shut up bastard, or I'll come in there and kick your ass!' _Ichigo mentally shouted at the demon.

"**Oh I'm so scared, little strawberry's gonna hurt me,"** cowered the Hollow with pretend shudders before falling into another insane fit of laughter.

Gritting his teeth in annoyance, Ichigo decided to ignore the idiocy of his inner bastard and get back to his conversation with Shaolin.

Shaolin was stunned at all the things that Ichigo had told her in their time together. He had gone through so much, and in her opinion he was the strongest, coolest person she had ever met. Now she just had one more thing to ask him.

"Um… Ichigo-sama?" Shaolin asked innocently.

"Yes Shao-did you just call me Ichigo-sama?" Ichigo deadpanned.

"Yes…please don't be mad Ichigo-sama, it's just that…you're the strongest person that I've ever met, and you're someone that I think that I can learn a lot from. I want to be as strong as you so that when the time comes when I have to take my test to get into the stealth force, I won't fail and be exiled from my family. So I beg of you Ichigo-sama, please teach me," said Shaolin, eyes pleading.

"But…But why would you be kicked out of your family if you don't get into the stealth force?" asked Ichigo in shock at both the request and the sudden change in demeanor the Shaolin was expressing.

"It is the way that things have always been in my family, if you are not strong enough to protect the noble Shihoin Clan than you are cast out," Shaolin said sadly as she looked down.

"I see," said Ichigo just as sadly.

Then he looked at her, and as he looked, he compared her to the Soifon of his time period. Shaolin was sweet, innocent, and just starting to experience the cruelty that this world had to offer. Soifon however, was cold, ruthless, obedient to a fault, and the only person that she truly seemed to value was Yoruichi.

Then he thought about why Soifon became so cold, and her character in general, this information he had learned from Yoruichi herself in one of their spars together.

'_Hm, the reason that Soifon became so distant was because she felt betrayed when Yoruichi left her behind when she aided Urahara in escaping Soul Society. She said that Soifon is an extremely loyal person, and breaking her trust literally broke and froze her heart. The fact that she's treating me like this means that she hasn't me Yoruichi yet. If I do take her on as my student I can ensure that she never has to go through that loneliness this time around,' _thought Ichigo happily as he stared at the young girl.

"Very well Shaolin, I will teach you," said Ichigo finally coming to a decision.

Shaolin who had been waiting patiently (but nervously) for his response, nearly shot into the air because she was so happy.

"Oh thank you Ichigo-sama! I promise that I will not fail you," she said happily as she gave him a deep bow.

"Alright, enough of that," said Ichigo, already getting annoyed with the fanatical loyalty that she was showing him.

"Okay, I think that we've been sitting here long enough don't you think, I think we should be getting you back home before your parents get worried" said Ichigo as he pointed out how the sun was starting to set.

"As you wish Ichigo-sama," said Shaolin, still bubbly from being accepted by her new sensei.

"AND WOULD YOU STOP WITH THE 'SAMA' CRAP!" shouted Ichigo, annoyed at her constant praising.

"Hai Ichigo-sama," Shaolin said with a smile.

"Oh just forget it," muttered Ichigo in exasperation.

The two stood and began their trek out of the forest, with Ichigo eager to explore the Soul Society of the past and little Shaolin thinking over all the things that Ichigo had told and showed her that day, and as she thought, she was sure of one absolute fact.

Her life would never be the same.

**(A/N) I think this chapter went through the most change, especially on the part of Hollow Ichigo. The way I had him before made him seem like Ichigo's gay lover or something (no offense to you Hichi/Ichi shippers) but that's just not the way he is. He is a psychotic bastard, and so I had to change his attitude to reflect that. Anyway I'm FINALLY writing the next chapter so I'll post it after I PROFFREAD (another very important thing I've learned about in my absence) it. **

**Alright**

**Later  
**


	4. The Race

**At LONG last here is Chapter 4**

**I'll put the AN at the end.**

**I still don't own Bleach**

* * *

**Chapter 4: The Race**

It was sunset as Ichigo and Soifon neared the Second Division barracks and Ichigo couldn't help but bask in the splendor of the world around him. It had been so long since he had seen so much _life _(which was strange since he was currently in the world of the dead), he was captivated by the sights and sounds of woods around them that were bathed in the golden light of the setting sun. It had been so long since he had seen such beauty, and he wasn't usually such a sentimental guy, however, seeing the return of nature where at once he only saw desolation and rubble brought a broad smile to his face.

'_This almost makes fighting Aizen again worth it,' _thought Ichigo amusedly.

Shaolin, who was gazing up at her new sensei as they walked, had trouble making out the expression on his face. Joy and relief were plain to see, but she sensed there many other emotions flickering around in his amber eyes all veiled under a thick layer of contentedness. He stared at the world as if it were his first time seeing it, hungrily taking in every detail as if at a moment's notice it could all slip away. His emotions radiated through his spiritual pressure, blanketing the area around him with a calm aura that made both the plants and animals relax in a lolling, sleepy daze. Even she felt as if now would be a great time to simply curl up under a tree and take a nice long nap.

Looking down at his protégé, Ichigo saw her eyelids begin to droop, he realized instantly that her young body was a lot more susceptible to the influence of his reiatsu, he chuckled as he watched her start to sway in her steps.

"Are you getting tired Shaolin-chan?" He asked playfully, to which she responded by giving him a half-hearted scowl.

"It's your fault, your reiatsu's just so soothing, like a gentle lullaby that's putting me to sleep."

"Is that so?" questioned the orange haired Shinigami, a tone of heavy amusement prevalent in his voice.

Nodding slowly Shaolin continued walking in a sleepy daze when suddenly she was jolted awake by a rough hand pulling her high into the air. The next thing she knew, she was sitting on her sensei's shoulders as he continued his relaxed pace towards the barracks.

"I-Ichigo-sama what do you think you're doing?" demanded a shocked and incredulous Shaolin.

"Well you said that you were getting sleepy, and plus you have shorter legs than I do, we can get you home much faster this way."

"B-but you're my Sensei. This isn't proper," Shaolin muttered meekly, her white cheeks tinting red in embarrassment.

"Proper? Ha! Trust me kid, if you're gonna be my student, you might as well throw any notions of _proper _out the window right now," Ichigo said with a laugh.

It had taken a long time, but after years of being her student, Yoruichi had finally gotten Ichigo to loosen up. After all the suffering he had been through he had learned that one needed to enjoy the more pleasant things in life while he could. Plus with his natural big brother instincts, it was second nature to him to help his sleepy little student. It was even cute in a way, it reminded him of when Karin and Yuzu used to… But those were painful memories that he wasn't about to go into. So, shaking his head clear of thoughts, Ichigo once again immersed himself in the nature around him.

Shaolin looked down at her mentor in wonder. All her life she was taught about being proper and disciplined. That for someone to carry her around like this was just so strange, not even her own parents treated her like this. Being the youngest child to the eighth head of the Fon family with five older brothers ahead of her, Shaolin was normally considered the runt of the litter. The Fon Clan was more of a business than a family. Strength meant everything, either you were strong enough to defend the noble Shihoin Clan, or you were cast away in shame. Being the youngest and a _woman _at that meant that she would have to fight tooth and nail to earn any form of respect from those around her.

'_But Ichigo-sama's different' _she thought to herself.

He was immensely powerful, as strong as a Captain at least, yet he didn't hold that regal air that she normally associated with the heads Gotei 13. Granted she had never actually met a Captain, but that was simply what she expected to feel if she ever found herself in the presence of one.

No, Ichigo-sama acted more like what she thought a normal Rukongai citizen would be like, kind, simple, and with no regard or interest in the workings of the nobility. Unfortunately she had never been out to the Rukongai either, so most of her knowledge was based more on speculation than fact. Hey, she might be from a lesser clan but she was still of the nobility, until she was able to join the stealth force proper she was still expected to lead a pretty sheltered life.

However, her musings were starting to make her head hurt, and her Sensei still had that relaxing aura coming off of him, so she decided to simply enjoy the ride as she buried her head in Ichigo's orange locks and quietly fall off to sleep.

Feeling her nestle herself in on his head, Ichigo couldn't help but smile. Reaching up to make sure that she wouldn't fall off, he used the chain of Zangetsu to keep her steady and assure that she wouldn't roll off in her sleep. Looked back at her, Ichigo saw her little face relaxed and peaceful in her slumber, and just for a brief moment, Ichigo saw a flash of the woman that she would someday become, that only made him smile more.

Soifon would _kill _him if she were here to see this tender moment. Well technically she was, just not in the ass kicking version that he was used to. But looking at her sleeping face as her tiny hand unconsciously played with one of the strands of his hair brought a steely edge to his resolve. He would protect this little girl, even if that meant taking on a million Sosuke Aizen's, even if it meant throwing himself into the fires of Hell he would keep her safe.

'_What was it Yoruichi-san used to call you? Oh yeah Little Bee, because of Suzumebachi. Well alright Little Bee, this time I swear you won't be left all alone. I promise that I will never leave you, that I will always be there for you when you need me, and trust me. I never go back on a promise."_

**(Inside Ichigo's mindscape)**

The two incarnations of Ichigo's soul watched on at the scene with concern in both of their eyes (though Hollow Ichigo attempted to appear more neutral).

"**That's a dangerous promise to make, it's almost like he's challenging fate to rip them apart," **commented the Hollow, his eyebrows knit together as if in deep though.

_/Indeed, however, you're talking about the boy who charged headlong into the Soul Society, taking on any Captain who got in his way, simply because he felt that he owed someone a debt,/ _challenged the old Zanpaktou.

"**That's bullshit and you know it old man. You know full well that he was sweet on her, even though he never admitted it to himself until the moment Aizen cut her down. Heck, the torrential downpour that came after was proof enough of that. Owed her a debt my ass,"**

_/True but what about Inoue? Or the fact that he already went to Hell in order to save Yuzu. You know as well as I that Ichigo's loyalty is not something to laugh at. The only real question you need to ask yourself is will you aid him in protecting this child?/_

"**Heh, don't get so sentimental old man. As much as I hate to admit it I am part of the king, maybe even more so than you are. I am his human nature given form, his dark desires, his hidden rage, and his endless sorrow, all of it. However, that also includes his will to protect. Everything that he keeps bottled up I let run free. Whereas your ultimate goal is to keep the king safe, mine is to make sure he fulfills his desires. I am not inherently evil. I simply despise weakness, as I am also the king's ambition, the drive to make his will reality. If he proves too weak to exercise his will, then I consider it my divine right to take this body as my own and do it myself."**

"**So to answer your question, yes, I will help protect the kid, until the time in which the king proves too weak to do so. At which point I will be king, and I **_**will **_**protect her,"** declared the Hollow, his golden eyes glaring in a steely resolution at the old Zanpaktou.

Having said his peace, the Hollow spun on his heel and proceeded to walk away. When suddenly, he stopped and turned his head back to Zangetsu with a sadistic grin on his face.

"**Plus, if I became king that would make her **_**my**_** student. Could you imagine the fun we'd have together, and all the wonderful things I could teach her?"** He said before turning and striding away again, cackling madly the whole way.

Zangetsu simply stared after the Hollow's retreating form, before giving an involuntary shudder at the thought.

**(Back with Ichigo)**

By the time Ichigo and Shaolin made it to the barracks the sky was a fiery rainbow of golds and reds. As they neared the entrance Ichigo gave the sleeping child a gentle nudge, rousing her from her slumber.

"Mm?" mumbled the little girl sleepily, as her eyelids slid open.

"Hey Shaolin-chan we're home, it's time to wake up," said Ichigo as he ruffled her ebony hair.

"Oh… wait what?! Stop Ichigo-sama!" warned Shaolin, pulling his hair to emphasize her point.

"OW! What was that for?"

"You can't just walk into the barracks. The stealth force is really secretive of what goes on in there."

"You couldn't have simply told me that without the hair pulling?"

"S-sorry Ichigo-sama, I panicked." Murmured and embarrassed Shaolin, who was trying to hide her blush in his orange hair.

"(sigh)it's fine, and I told you to quit with that 'sama' crap! Anyway, do you know of any way that we can get in their without being seen?"

"No, the Second Division is very heavily fortified. You'd either have to be invisible or insanely fast to get by undetected. However, I don't see any way that you can get through without using your Bankai, and that would bring way too much attention."

"That's a pretty good analysis Shaolin-chan. But I have a question for you."

"Yes Ichigo-sama?"

"Have you ever shunpo'd before?" he asked with a sadistic smile that just screamed 'I'm about to get back at you for calling me sama again.'

"N-no… Wait Ichigo-sama you can't possibly be thinking about trying to flash step into the barracks? The stealth force has operatives who are specially trained to sense shunpo. We'll be caught before we're even five steps past the gate!" Shaolin exclaimed, trying to get her obviously crazy mentor to see sense.

"Not at the speed we'll be going! Hold on tight Shaolin-chan!" Ichigo said cheerily before speeding off in a barely sub-sonic dash.

"Wait no ICHIGOOOO-SAMA!" screamed Shaolin as her world rocketed from zero to mock ten.

She didn't even have time to feel surprise. It was over so fast there wasn't a chance to feel _anything. _All she knew was that one second she was on the road approaching the Second Division barracks, and the next she was in an alley just off the center of the compound.

"So how was that?" asked Ichigo with a cheeky grin.

"Wow!" was all she could come up with as a response.

The sensation of her first flash step, even if she didn't initiate it, was incredible. She was so amazed that she couldn't even think about being mad at the recklessness of her sensei. For a split-second it was as if the world was standing still and she was the only thing moving. It was one of the most wonderful sensations of her life, and as she looked at her new teacher, she couldn't help give him a wide grin.

"That was amazing Ichigo-sama!" she cheered with glee.

"I'm glad you enjoyed it, now let's get you home," said Ichigo with a laugh.

"There's Otou-sama over there," said Shaolin as she pointed to a group of stealth force operatives out in the courtyard.

"Alright, hold on," warned Ichigo before the two flickered away.

A second later they appeared behind a man fully cloaked in stealth force attire who was giving orders to the operatives in front of him.

"I want Shaolin found immediately! Yoruichi-sama will be here any minute and I want all my children present for her arrival!" he demanded, there was a severe edge in his voice that brought fear into the eyes of all those who stood before him.

"Wish granted," came a voice from behind him. The man spun around and locked eyes with an orange haired Shinigami standing there nonchalantly with his daughter on his shoulders.

"Who in blazes are you, and how did you get past our defenses?" the man demanded, glaring at Ichigo with his hand on his Zanpaktou, his men quickly followed suit.

"Kurosaki Ichigo at your service, and I was just returning your daughter, I met her in the woods today and decided to walk her home," replied Ichigo, standing completely relaxed in the face of this comical (in his opinion) display of force.

"That still doesn't explain how you got past our security?" questioned the man harshly.

"Shunpo," Ichigo answered simply.

"Preposterous! No one except Yoruichi-sama would be fast enough to-" his rant was cut off mid-sentence by the sound of bells ringing on the walkway high above.

Instantly every operative dropped to their knees and Ichigo took Shaolin off his shoulders so that she was now standing next to her kneeling father. As everyone in the courtyard bowed (minus Shaolin and Ichigo) they all watched as the princess of the Shihoin clan was carried on a palanquin on the walkway high above. The tan skinned goddess was adorned in fine golden silk robes which made her catlike eyes shine the brightest shade of yellow, and she was ornamented with a beautiful hairpiece that sat like a crown atop her smooth dark violet hair.

In his kneeling position the eighth head of the Fon Clan looked in approval at the wonderstruck expression on his daughters face.

"Do you see her Shaolin?" he asked her.

"The one on the palanquin is the princess of the Shihoin Clan, the appointed Tenshiheisoban, Defender of the Realm. She will one day lead the Punishment Force. We the Fon Clan, devote everything to her," the man said solemnly, imparting the severity of the Fon Clan's duty onto his daughter so that she could understand her destiny.

"Everything?" the little girl responded, though it was strained, as if forced.

"Yes everything. That is our duty and fate, and yours as well. From this day on, your name will be Soifon, and you will live only to serve her," declared her father, giving Shaolin her codename that would accompany her for the rest of her life.

"Soifon is it? It suits you. Well listen here Soifon-chan, do you want to do something really fun?" Soifon looked up at the into Ichigo's smirking face, who seemed completely oblivious to the glares of the surrounding Stealth Force members for failing to show the proper level of respect towards the Shihoin princess.

Oh but he noticed, he just didn't care. In fact, if they were mad now, they were gonna be _pissed _by the time he was done.

He had to do something. He couldn't let this chance slip by. It was either this or falling out into a hysterical fit of laughter, and frankly, is plan was a lot more fun. Just the sight of his mentor, the modesty lacking, slave driving, ball of fun that was Shihoin Yoruichi, sitting regally on a palanquin in all her splendorous glory was almost too much for Ichigo to bear. Hearing that awful speech that Shao- no, Soifon now. That Soifon's idiot father gave her was just the icing on the cake. Ichigo wasn't going to let _his _student think that she had to spend the rest of her life as the cat demon's servant. Being her friend was okay, but definitely not her servant.

So, to wipe that wonderstruck look off her face, Ichigo devised a plan that was sure to take the goddess of flash off the pedestal of Soifon's mind.

"Ichigo-sama, this isn't really the time for games," Soifon (who still couldn't get over the fact that she _finally _had her own codename) told her teacher seriously, not catching the wide-eyed stares she was getting from her father and those around her for the 'sama' honorific she gave to the orange haired Shinigami.

"Nonsense, come on trust me, it'll be really fun!" encouraged Ichigo, holding out his hand to his young apprentice.

"O-okay Ichigo-sama," said a weary Soifon, as she reached a tentative hand out to her mentor.

"Soifon Wait!" shouted her father, but it was too late.

In an instant the Shinigami boy and his daughter were gone, and the proud head of the Fon Clan could only stare in horror at what happened next.

The next thing Soifon knew she was back on Ichigo's shoulders, only now they were eye level with the Shihoin princess. She had a millisecond to wonder what her now _clearly _insane sensei was about to do before watching with a terror stricken face as Ichigo plucked the beautiful hairpin from the woman's head.

"Catch me if you can," he taunted the wide eyed Yoruichi with a cheeky smirk, before he and Soifon took off in a burst of speed.

Now racing through the skies above the Second Division, it took Soifon's mind a moment to process what was going on, but when she did, her little body was filled with both abject terror and boiling rage.

"You tricked me!" she said in a hurt tone, tears brimming in the corners of her eyes.

"You had me lead you back to the Second Division just so you could steal Shihoin-sama's hairpiece!"

"No Soifon-chan, I did not trick you. I don't intend to steal this hairpiece at all, I promise I'll give it back as soon as the game is over. I just want to see if the Shihoin-hime is up for a little chase," Ichigo responded cheerily, while at the same time giving Soifon a sincere look so that she understood that he meant her no ill will.

"But Ichigo, that's even crazier, she's the princess of one of the five noble houses, there's no way she is going to chase us down herself," she argued, holding back the 'sama' because she wasn't sure if she could trust the orange haired Shinigami anymore.

That hurt Ichigo a lot more than he was willing to let on. However, he smiled when he saw the yellow blur speeding toward them at a crazy speed.

"You think so? Well than what do you say to that?" he asked as the goddess of flash herself appeared next to them.

"I'll admit that very few could pull off what you just did, and since I'm feeling generous, if you put the girl down and give me back my hairpin I'll only beat you within an inch of your life," said Yoruichi with a demonic smile (not Unohana level though).

"We're sorry Shihoin-sama, we'll stop right away and hmph," she was cut off by Ichigo's hand being placed over her mouth.

"I _said _that I'd give it back if you could catch me, but if this is as fast as you can go, I'm sorry to say that you don't have a prayer," tsk'd Ichigo with mock pity before her rocketed forward in another burst of speed.

Yoruichi stared wide-eyed at the place where he had once been before a feral grin marred her noble features. Ripping her fine robes to reduce her drag (and making herself look even more provocative in the process), the Shihoin princess took off after her now _very _unfortunate prey.

The two cleared the walls of the Second Division and moved on to the Third. The speed at which they were traveling created a whiplash that caused many Shinigami to fall over as they were performing their evening duties.

Soifon was both terrified and amazed at the situation she now found herself in. She was incredibly fearful of what would happen when they were caught by Shihoin-sama, and she had no doubt that they would be. As fast as Ichigo was Soifon knew there was no way that he could outrun someone from the family that was said to produce the fastest people in Soul Society.

However, the speed at which they were going was unreal to her. Her hair was stuck back in a position that she doubted she'd ever be able to get down, but strangely, she didn't really care. As the wind rushed passed her, she couldn't help but feel so _free. _Like all of life's troubles were meaningless to her as she tore through the sky, and secretly, she really didn't want it to end.

Sure enough, as they cleared the gate to the Fourth Division the Shihoin princess was right alongside them again.

"Give it up carrot top, you've proved you're faster than the average stealth force operative. But you don't have a chance of beating me," the cat demon goaded, though she had a slight glint in her golden eyes that told Ichigo that she was still having fun on this merry little chase.

"You think so Princess? Well let's see if that fine ass of yours can keep up with this!" Ichigo challenged back as both he and the goddess became twin bullets of wind, both on the verge of going supersonic.

"Y-you think my ass is fine huh? W-well good because when I'm d-done that's all you'll be able to s-see," she said trying to sound confident, but Ichigo could tell that she was approaching her limit.

'_Sorry Princess, but you've got a long way to go before you become the Cat Demon that I know and fear,' _thought Ichigo as he looked at the struggling Shihoin heir.

They were now over the Seventh Division and their backlash was creating chaos. Throwing over tables and chairs, throwing dishes over, and the shocked members of the 13 Court Guard Squads could only look to the sky and wonder what in the world was going on?

As Ichigo looked to his opponent again, he could see the strain now evident on her face. Deciding to end their little game, he turned his head and gave her a cheery smile.

"Well it's been fun Princess, but from the look on your face it looks like it's time to cross the finish line. First one back to Sokyoku hill is the winner," he told her before quickly making a U-turn, effectively preventing her from responding.

As she joined him in the home stretch, she glared at the carrot-top ahead of her. Even with a kid on his shoulders he appeared to simply be toying with her. Her! The one who had surpassed her father as the fastest of the Shihoin, fastest in Soul Society even, there was no way she was going to let some upstart rookie beat her. So, using every bit of energy she had left, the goddess of flash split the wind on a mad dash towards Sokyoku Hill.

As the captive observer, Soifon watched as these two Titans tore the clouds asunder as they roared through the skies. She could hardly believe that people like this existed, let alone that she had the privilege of soaring among them. This whole experience was just so surreal to her. She was the bottom of her house, her father had five sons as his heirs should anything happen to him. He didn't need her. In all honesty she was probably just an accident in the bedroom*.

Yet here she was, racing along with two Captain Class Shinigami like it was the most natural thing in the world, and as she watched the world streak by, she smiled. Today had truly been a wonderful day.

"Hold on tight Soi-chan, it's about to get really rough," warned Ichigo.

Trusting his word, Soifon tightened her grip on his neck, and was soon very glad that she did.

When Ichigo broke the sound barrier, Soifon saw her whole world elongate. Everything around her became nothing but streaks of color, like looking through a kaleidoscope. She wasn't even sure how Ichigo could make sense of it all. However, one thing she was sure of was that this was one of the greatest experiences of her life.

The force of her adversaries jump to supersonic was so great that it completely through off Yoruichi's stride. It blew her back in stunned surprise and propelled her into the rooftop of a nearby building. She smashed into the tiled roof with incredible force, and the next thing she new, Yoruichi found herself on a group of Shinigami's dinner table. As their stunned faces gazed upon her disbelief the Shihoin princess ignored them and stared in wide-eyed shock at the clouds that had been ripped apart by her opponent.

'_Unbelievable! He beat me so easily and still had the power to surpass even my limits. Who is this guy?' _she wondered.

Back with Ichigo, he and Soifon landed with a skidding stop on the tip of Sokyoku Hill.

"So how as that Soi-chan?" questioned Ichigo when the two had finally come to a halt.

"Ichigo-sama that was… AMAZING!" shouted the little girl, causing Ichigo to smile and subconsciously ge glad for the return of his honorific.

"I'm glad you enjoyed it," he said with a laugh, while ruffling her now wild hair.

"But Ichigo-sama, what about Shihoin-sama?" she asked worriedly, when suddenly the golden-eyed goddess herself appeared beside them.

"Well I have to say I'm impressed, I don't know who you are, but you certainly have some moves," the goddess complimented with a wide smile.

"The names Kurosaki Ichigo, and I believe that this belongs to you," he replied while holding out her orneate hairpin.

"Keep it. You said I could have it back if I could catch you, and as much as I hate to admit it, I couldn't. So consider it a gift from me to you _strawberry,_" the princess said with a seductive wink, ignoring his irritated scowl, she turning her attention to the girl on his shoulders.

"Your friend here's pretty good isn't he?" she asked the little girl who normally would have buried her head in embarrassment from being addressed by someone of the princess's rank, however, since she was still hyped up on the adrenaline of the race she energetically nodded her head.

"Yeah Ichigo-sama's the best! He did all that without even using his Bankai!" she cheered, unaware that her statement had brought a new curious light into the goddesses eyes, and a cautious one into those of her mentor.

"Bankai you say? This strawberry knows Bankai?" she asked looking at the orange haired man with even greater interest than before.

"Yep he showed me, but what's incredible is that he said he learned it in three days," Soifon ramble on.

"Oh he did, did he?" Yoruichi's golden eyes narrowed.

"Uh Soi-chan," Ichigo said wile nudging his student, trying to get her to stop.

Soifon's eyes widened in realization of what she had done, however, before scene could progress any further. They were interrupted by the arrival the Stealth Force, oddly enough, being led by a black panther.

"Yoruichi what is going on here? I've told the other Captains to hold back, but they will only be patient for so long," the giant cat rumbled, its golden eyes narrowing dangerously at Ichigo.

Yoruichi was about to speak, before she was interrupted when Soifon's father made his way to the front of the group.

"My deepest apologies Taichou, this is all the result of the foolishness of my child," he said while gesturing in at Soifon.

"She led this stranger into our barracks and endangered the life of Yoruichi-sama, and for that there can be only one recompense," he said darkly as he turned a cold glare on his daughter.

"Fon Shaolin, you have disgraced our family, you have endangered a life of the family we exist to protect, for that, as the eighth head of the Fon Clan, I hereby banish you from our family! Never again will you be welcome in the Second Division, all your rights and privileges as a child of the nobility are now stripped away!" he declared, causing Soifon's eyes to widen in horror.

"No Otou-sama!" she protested as she dropped down from Ichigo's shoulders.

"I didn't mean any harm, and Ichigo never hurt Shihoin-sama. Please I'm begging you! Don't cast me out!" she begged as she fell to her knees, tears pouring down her cheeks.

"My decision is final girl, now BE GONE!" her father shouted, pointed his finger as a gesture for her to leave.

Soifon couldn't move. Today had been so great, she had made her first friend, gotten her codename, and she had even gotten to meet the Shihoin heiress herself. How could things have fallen apart so fast? All she could was beg her father's forgiveness. So that was what she did, she bowed her head to the floor and pleaded that she was sorry over and over again. However, all her father did was glare at her in cold apathy.

As Ichigo gazed down at Soifon's prostrated form, a hot fiery ball of rage formed in the pit of his stomach. Looking at the bastard in front of him, a wave of kill intent erupted from his body all directed solely on the eighth head of the Fon Clan. Everyone on the Hill felt his rage, save for Soifon, who was still consumed in her sorrow. The weaker men who stood their clan head buckled from the weight of the spiritual pressure, while the panther's eyes widened in interest.

However the worst of them was the man himself, who could only watch as the orange haired man advanced on him in paralyzing fear. He couldn't move, he couldn't breathe. All he could do was stare in terror at the man's amber eyes, which conveyed the dark message 'You are going to DIE'. He squished his eyes shut, waiting for the inevitable pain, he didn't have to wait long.

When the hit came it was like getting punched by a mountain, he felt his jaw shatter and wave of pain explode in his head. However, what he didn't expect was a second impact, a shoed foot that delivered a tremendous blow to his ribs, cracking some, utterly breaking others.

The next thing he knew, he found himself on the ground staring up as two imposing figures glared down at him.

The one was the orange headed boy, his amber eyes blazing with fury. However, what really surprised him was the second figure. It was Yoruichi-sama! Her catlike eyes narrowed into golden slits as her lips curled in a barley suppressed snarl.

Ichigo was also mildly surprised at her appearance, but knowing Yoruichi like he did, he guessed he probably shouldn't have been.

"Does it look like I need protecting Fool?" she Shihoin heiress questioned harshly.

"Yoruichi-sama I AH!" the man began before being cut off when his mistress applied more pressure to his broken ribs.

"If you and your men hadn't been so incompetent, he wouldn't have gotten in regardless, now would he? For you to take _your _failure out on a little girl, your own daughter no less, is unforgivable!" she sneered at him as he writhed in pain under her foot.

"However, if you want to banish her that's fine, because if you don't want her as your daughter I'll take her as my own!" she declared, which caused Soifon, Ichigo, the panther, and all the Stealth Force soldiers to look at her in shock.

"W-what?" the little girl stammered, staring at Yoruichi in wide eyed amazement.

"That's right! You are no longer Fon Shaolin, from today forward you are now Shihoin Shaolin," the goddess of flash told her with a smile.

Soifon looked at the princess, and it was at that moment that she couldn't take it anymore. So much had happened that day that her tiny head had finally overloaded. So to her it was perfectly natural to Soifon eyes rolled to the back of her head and she fainted.

Before her head could hit the dirt, Ichigo was by her side, scooping her exhausted body into his arms as he looked at her with worried eyes. Yoruichi have him a questioning look, but he simply gave her a wry smile in return.

"She's had a long day," he said quietly.

Nodding her head Yoruichi's attention again returned to the man under her foot. Her expression darkened as she leaned in so that they were eye to eye with each other.

"Even though I loathe to do so, I'm going to let you live. But I warn you, that girl is under my protection now, if you or any of your associates come near her, I swear to you that you will wish I had killed you right here and now. Are we clear?" she said menacingly, to which the man nodded his head in fright.

"Good, now _you _be gone," she hissed as she pushed herself back up, making him gasp out in pain as more pressure was applied to his rib cage.

Seeing that the situation was over, the black panther made his way forward.

"I think it would be best if we continued this conversation back at the Shihoin estate," he said as he looked pointedly at Ichigo.

"Yes I agree Otou-san, it would seem that we have much to discuss with our new friend," concurred Yoruichi as she too turned her golden eyes on the orange haired Shinigami.

'_That's her Father?' _Ichigo wondered in shock as he stared between the terrifying creature and the Shihoin princess.

"Um sure," Ichigo said nervously as scratched the back of his head with his free hand.

"Then fallow me," Yoruichi's father commanded as he flickered away.

"It's gonna be a _long _night isn't it," the strawberry asked is former mentor, causing her to smirk.

"Yep, but don't worry, I'll bring snacks," she said with a wink before taking his hand.

Ichigo looked down at his apprentice, who was snoring gently into his shoulder.

"Well kid, let's go see what the future has in store for us shall we?" he questioned before the three of them raced away.

**End of Chapter 4**

**(A/N) Alright I finally updated! I'm going to try to read this story (and any others I make) once a day to iron out any problems I see. I noticed some in my earlier chapters yesterday, but when I went to correct them I accidentally closed my browser and since I was working on this chapter all day today, I'll get to it tomorrow.**

*** She knew about sex because as a rule, most female assassins are taught that sex can become a very powerful way of eliminating their targets, and at this point she would be in something like the Academy of the Naruto verse, only this Academy actually teaches useful information.**

**Alright until next time.**

**EDIT 10/11/12**

**Okay I have a question to ask? what should Yoruichi's fathers name be, I want him to look like John Stewart from the pre-unlimited Justice League (before he went bald) cartoon only with gold eyes instead of green. I'm not very good with Japanese names, which is why I'm kind of uncomfortable with making OC's for anime fics, so I'm asking you readers for help. I probably won't update for about a week or so because I want to find out what happens next in the manga before continuing. Crazy as it sounds, I am going to tie this mess as close as I can into the current canon universe. So sit back and imagine what John would look like in a Captain's haori and send me a PM to tell me what comes to mind.**

**Thank you.**

**Later **


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